"Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurred to God?" I don't remember where I heard these words. I don't remember who said them, when, or why, but I remember the words, and the effect they had on me. God, according to the Bible, knows all things, even declaring the end from the beginning. Furthermore, this isn't something He learned over time. It's not an acquired knowledge. He has always known everything.
This includes every intimate detail of your life, from the moment of your conception, right the way through to the day you receive your summons and enter His Holy courtroom. As we read in Psalm 139:16: "Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them."
This is fantastic news! It means there is nothing unaccounted for. Not even your absolute worst day is a surprise to God. Therefore, while it is possible to grieve Him, it is impossible to disappoint Him. He won't look at something you've done and decide "that's it, the Gospel is cancelled".
There are so many Christians today who wonder if God still loves them. They remember the day they got saved with great fondness. But they've committed so many sins since then, so is it still effective? Or they've done a really big sin, so maybe God can't forgive them this time. This is the same God who knew ahead of time that He would be crucified, yet as the crowds mocked Him, He prayed "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (Luke 23:34).
God knew, from the beginning, what the end would be. The sins you committed that made you feel cut off from His love should grieve you, as they grieve Him. But do not think, for one second, that they crept up on Him. Quite the opposite, Scripture tells us "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death." (2 Corinthians 7:10).
The irony, then, is that Christians who fear for their salvation have the least cause to be so. Sin has been present on this Earth for 6,000 years. From the day Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, right up to this day, human beings have been in constant rebellion to God. Even His faithful people. Noah got drunk even after being spared the great flood. Abraham slept with Hagar to produce Ishmael. David, a "man after God's own heart" (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22), nevertheless slept with a married woman, and had her husband killed in order to cover it up. And God forgave every single one of them.
Now, although it's possible some of my readers are guilty of similar sins, I generally find Christians are more sorrowful over less violence. I will give no examples, because I want this article to encompass all of them. But if you ask "is my sin on that list?", the answer is yes. Let's see what Paul has to say:
"And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." (1 Timothy 1:12-17).
The chief of sinners, saved as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life... I want you to think about the implications of that. First things first, are you the chief of sinners? The answer is probably no. You may have committed any number of sins, but I can all but guarantee there is someone worse. But let's suppose you are. I would be flattered beyond reason if this article reached the absolute worst human being on this planet right now. I don't know exactly who that would be, but the good news is, it doesn't matter. All that matters is who Jesus is.
There is nothing God cannot forgive, nor even anything God would have decided not to forgive "if He knew". Because He did know. The entire purpose of that cross was to erase the debt for the very sin you now feel such sorrow for that you fear Him. And all the sins before that. And even the sins after that. Do you believe? If yes, then you are saved. Your sins are forgotten, you are forgiven. You may now walk in the good works God prepared for you ahead of time (Ephesians 2:8-10).